The explosion in the subdivision just south of the city on Saturday, Nov. 10, killed John and Jennifer Longworth. After the second failed attempt to burn the home, Monserrate Shirley said she went to the home of Glenn Hults to pick up her daughter. While there had been some communications early on, we were not willing to offer Monserrate Shirley a significant deal for her cooperation, Robinson said. Every day I ask myself why I didnt stop this. Although the jury would eventually hear testimony and an audio recording of Leonard talking to an undercover ATF agent posing as a hitman (and Leonard would eventually get an extra 50 years in prison for it), having that information before the trial even began would have been extremely prejudicial against him. "I want $300,000. Shirley said she recalled telling them two innocent people die out of this.THIS HAS TO BE DONE. Leonard started talking the next week about trying for a second time to burn down the home. By the time wed got to trial, hed already been in jail for going on three years. While we knew that Monserrate Shirley on her own would never have caused this crime, it couldnt have happened without her. Today, Snowball, a white Persian cat, is in the care of John Shirley, Monserrate's ex-husband. I know it caught us by surprise and we had to react to it.. At 11:11 p.m. on Nov. 10, 2012, a two-story home on the south side of Indianapolis exploded with the force of as much as 5 tons of TNT. This time, Mark and Bob talked alone while Monserrate left to pick up her daughter. A copy of her plea agreement was entered into evidence and handed out to each member of the jury. Shirley said she would come back immediately, but they told her there was no house to come back to. I had a homicide detective crying on the stand. On November 19, it was announced that the investigation had become a criminal investigation. Made and inspired by a love triangle, this was written by a girl from Italy. For Lt. Mario Garza, the Indianapolis Fire Department veteran tasked with leading the arson investigation, the Richmond Hill explosion will likely be the most significant challenge of his career. Shirley said that she was at a casino bar at the time of the explosion, and her boyfriend and daughter -- who also live with her -- weren't home either. She never got a call, though. But didnt the jury need to hear from the residents? "Shortly thereafter I moved some furniture into the apartment. Download the RTV6 app to get the latest live blog posts as the proceedings unfold. The Retaking Of Richmond Hill - Indianapolis Monthly Mark Leonard first mentioned trying to burn the house down in February 2012, according to Shirley. Shirley and her boyfriend Mark Leonard were out of town for the weekend while her 12-year-old daughter stayed with friends. And then there was the arrangement that when I picked up my daughter I would get to take some of my belongings. She got in the van with them, and Mark asked her to give Bob $40. [6] One woman had previously won a $70,000 judgment against Leonard in a civil suit after lending him $53,000, which he never repaid. Monserrate "Moncy" Shirley, a nurse, owned the home at the center of the explosion. Much of the attention since the explosion has centered on Monserrate Shirley and her boyfriend Mark Leonard, who lived at the house in the center of the blast area. Robert Leonard, who was convicted of murder and multiple felonies, was sentenced to life without parole. In fact, they said that at the time she raised her insurance policy to $300,000, she was roughly $300,000 in debt (more than $200K between her two mortgages on top of the bankruptcy settlement left over from her divorce). When asked why she didn't take Leonard's hospitalization in March 2012 as an opportunity not to let him back into her home since she knew what he wanted to do by that point, she said she couldn't turn away a sick person. At the time her friends called her, Monserrate was at a casino with Mark Leonard. The sentence accounts for time served and good time credit. They went home together that night and he moved in the first week of December. "Our investigators believe natural gas is involved," the Indianapolis Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. Shirley met Mark Leonard. They got to the room, but Mark wasn't feeling well so he stayed there while Shirley played slot machines for about an hour. His defense team admitted that the blaze had been intentionally set, but told jurors it was only intended to be a small fire and that murder was never his intention. See also:Shantonia Heard of Atlanta Left Her 2 Children Alone With No Power and Gas Oven On, Police Say Apartment Fire Safety Tips Man Killed as Gas Explosion Destroys Connecticut Home. Get caught up on the first two chapters here:Chapter I: The Night the Sky Caught Fire|Chapter II: The $4 Million Arson Plot. At least half a dozen marriages in the Richmond Hill neighborhood ended in divorce in the years immediately following the blast. They laughed at her for asking, but it was switched back out. One year of his sentences wassuspended, and the rest was to be split between jail and work release. On the day of the explosion, another neighbor saw a white van pull into the driveway of Shirley's residence between 2:00 and 3:00p.m. Monserrate Shirley spent the entire day on the stand Wednesday, and the anticipation of her testimony was evident in courtroom attendance. [28] The defense said that what became the Richmond Hill explosion was only supposed to be a "stupid and selfish insurance fraud that went horribly wrong", adding, "Precautions were taken to ensure people weren't harmed." (They were) my neighbors for a very long time since we built the house, Shirley said. Shirley said she has a condition with her tear ducts that makes her unable to produce tears, so people dont think Im crying for real.. Says Sen. Tom. INTERACTIVE MAP|Residents relive Richmond Hill explosion, ViewExplosion Damaged Homesin a larger map, Download the new and improved RTV6 app to get the latest news on the go and receive alerts to your phone, Sign up to have the latest news headlines delivered straight to your email inbox, Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way, Indianapolis, IN Interactive Weather Radar, Full testimony: Monserrate Shirley takes the stand. [30] He died on January 30, 2018, at an Indianapolis hospital, aged 48, of natural causes. He says he "was very surprised" to learn Snowball had been boarded on the night of the explosion. Did you see her on TV a few days later? "You face one, you get over one and you've got another one all the way until the end. I had seen it used in a couple of games, but I never knew it was the name of a real person. For one thing, the trial team deputy prosecutors Denise Robinson and Mark Hollingsworth, plus two junior deputies would have to wade through an entire subdivision-worth of evidence to build, arguably, the largest criminal prosecution in Indiana history. They went to the casino and waited for the call that a fire had broken out, but again, the call never came. Mark. Shirley: "She wanted us to live in a bigger house. Its about remembering who you are. She even took some leave from work to stay with him longer than her paid vacation time allowed. Her sister had lived in the same housing complex. Their first trip together was to the Hollywood Casino roughly 3-4 months after they first met. Jeffrey Wager and IMPD investigators, Lt. Mario Garza and IFD investigators, agents of the Federal ATF, and our trial team for their commitment and perseverance to bring justice for the Richmond Hill residents.. Much of Tuesdays testimony included accounts of Shirleys difficult childhood. Shirley and her boyfriend Mark Leonard were out of town for the weekend while her 12-year-old daughter stayed with friends. Except her cat, the clothes on her back and a teddy bear she got when she was 1. On multiple occasions Wednesday, Shirley said she didnt say no to Mark Leonard because she loved him. She continued handling some of Marion Countys most heinous crimes until January 2017, when her former boss, then-Elkhart County Prosecutor Curtis Hill, called her up and asked her to join him at the Indiana Statehouse, where he had just been elected attorney general. For one: She had earned a reputation as a master liar, as Mark Leonards defense team would later call her. Monserrate Shirley spent the entire day on the stand Wednesday, and the anticipation of her testimony was evident in courtroom attendance. As his court date neared, the workload ramped up. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. While Leonard has been in slacks, a dress shirt and tie throughout the trial, Shirley walked into the courtroom in shackles and a prison jumpsuit. I didnt want it to affect the trial date, Robinson said. Its an interesting concept. Marion County Superior Court Judge Sheila Carlisle sentenced Monserrate Shirley to spend the maximum sentence of 50 years in prison on Tuesday. Gary Thompsonwas handed a 30-year prison sentence, 20 years executed, for his role in the murderous insurance fraud scheme. Minch: "Before that, you did have some problems with the pilot light on the furnace?" Inquiry Into Indianapolis Blast Suggests Scheme Gone Wrong - The New Once they were alone, Leonard, Holts and Shirley started talking about the fire again while they sat around the pool drinking beer. The brothers were sentenced to terms of life without parole for spearheading the conspiracy. She asked Mark and Bob what happened that made it be an explosion instead of a fire. It was unclear when the complaint was made and whether the utility company was alerted. Monserrate Shirley was ordered to serve out her sentence at the Indiana Womens Prison in Indianapolis. I didnt want to do anything that would cause that trial date to be continued.. Shirley: "Yes. He said there wouldn't be a problem because it would be a small fire so no one would get hurt, and since she had a long history with the insurance company and no criminal record, they would get the money almost immediately. She was 11 years old at that point. She still qualifies as a practicing nurse. If Monserrate Shirley keeps up her part of the agreement, a judge will decide her sentence after all the Richmond Hill explosiontrials have been completed. Mark Leonards trial at the St. Joseph County Courthouse was eventful before it even started. They agreed to say they'd been having trouble with the thermostat and smelling gas for a while. Indianapolis explosion may have been caused by furnace, says owner of Its about becoming who you were meant to be. When she left that morning, her daughterand Snowball were still there (Mark was going to take them to school and the kennel). At the trial I had firefighters crying on the stand. For their families, the tree is one last connection to the loved ones they lost on Nov. 10, 2012. On December 21, 2012, Monserrate Shirley, Mark Leonard, and his brother Bob Leonard were charged with 2 counts of felony murder and .
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